Uncle Hikigaya is Forever Young [68]

“Mom! What are you spacing out about? You told me not to gossip, but after listening, you ended up lost in thought yourself! Hmph!”

At lunchtime, Yuigahama-dango teased her mother cheerfully at the dining table.

Mrs. Yuigahama was still somewhat absent-minded, staring blankly with her spoon in hand.

After all, if you changed the names in Hikigaya Ryōhei’s story, you could probably write a bestselling melodramatic novel.

“...Ahem, Mom was only thinking about it at home, not in public.”

Hearing her daughter’s teasing, Mrs. Yuigahama felt slightly embarrassed.

She swore she’d originally intended just to scold Yui a bit. But the more she heard, the more shocked—and intrigued—she became, causing today’s lunch preparation to be delayed by a full half-hour.

“Ohhh? So, what do you think, Mom? I mean, even if Hikigaya-sensei isn’t super handsome or anything, his overall conditions aren’t bad, right? Plus, they already had two kids! How could she still divorce him just to chase her first love? What exactly was Mrs. Hikigaya thinking? I just don’t get it!”

Dango swiftly rambled out these words.

Having been raised singlehandedly by her mother, Yuigahama Yui had always felt quite happy and secure. From her own experience, it was practically unimaginable that a mother would willingly abandon her children—let alone two.

“Hmm...well...you're still young. In this world, everyone has different things they chase after...” Mrs. Yuigahama rested her chin in one hand, biting gently on the spoon, her eyes absently drifting toward an old photo of herself and Yui’s father.

First love…

Back then, for the sake of love, perhaps I also unintentionally hurt my parents…

The thought crossed her mind without warning.

Indeed, the world rarely let one have it both ways.

“Hehe! But Mrs. Hikigaya—oh wait, his ex-wife—really was beautiful, wasn’t she?”

“Enough already! Stop dwelling on these things, young lady! No matter how important love might be, adults must never go against social morals! A mother like that can really harm her children. Thankfully, Hikigaya-sensei seems resilient and optimistic. He should know how to guide his kids.”

Mrs. Yuigahama said, somewhat annoyed, gently tapping Yui’s bowl with her chopsticks.

“Remember this clearly. Don’t gossip about other people's private matters anymore. It’s especially rude in public!”

Seeing her mom suddenly becoming serious, Yuigahama-dango shrank her delicate neck slightly, obediently ducking behind her rice bowl like a little puppy.

“I got it already.”

“You clearly have too little homework—or you’ve eaten too much.”

“Eh? I actually have a bunch of homework!”

Although she wasn’t entirely sure whether her daughter had truly understood, as a morally upright young mother, Mrs. Yuigahama herself would certainly never gossip in public.

Moreover, she wasn’t the sort of idle, stereotypical housewife anyway.

Although she appeared to be a stay-at-home mother, there was actually no husband providing for the household—everything depended solely on her own efforts.

These years, the household expenses and Yui’s upbringing had largely relied on her late husband’s insurance and compensation payments. However, Mrs. Yuigahama never sat idly by, eating away her inheritance.

Although she’d lost the chance for formal higher education due to running away from home for love, she herself was far from uneducated. As a daughter from a well-to-do family, she had still received thorough private tutoring and an elite upbringing from childhood.

Over the years, besides managing household chores, she had diligently studied through correspondence courses and successfully obtained her pharmacist qualification certificate.

By affiliating herself with a pharmaceutical company specializing in cancer medication, she earned about 750,000 yen a year.

She was also skilled in literature. Through persistent submissions, she slowly became a freelance writer, occasionally publishing essays and stories in literary magazines.

The income wasn’t stable, but it trickled in each month, and now with enough published articles, even reprints brought her extra royalties.

Additionally, her family back home occasionally sent her some financial support these past few years.

In short, at thirty-three years old, Yuigahama Asuna was an independent and strong woman working earnestly to support herself and her daughter—not some idle, gossiping housewife who had nothing better to do than chatter.

...

“Papa, when can we eat out again? Today was sooo filling, hehe!”

On the way home, Komachi tugged playfully at Ryōhei’s sleeve.

Perhaps due to not having eaten out in quite a while, Komachi eagerly finished an entire large plate of chicken rice and a bowl of soup today.

Her appetite was now completely sated.

“Next time Papa gets his paycheck, okay? Then I’ll take you guys out to play again.”

Ryōhei affectionately ruffled the hair of the two adorable girls walking beside him, smiling gently.

The salary from Sōbu High actually wasn’t bad.

Because it was a public school, it hadn't been significantly impacted by the ongoing financial crisis so far. The basic monthly salary was assured, although some extra benefits had been slightly cut.

Even then, he could still earn over 400,000 yen per month.

Although the original “Hikigaya Ryōhei” had left behind a terribly messy situation, the current Ryōhei believed that, given another two or three years, their lives would become much easier.

Wait a second. In two or three years, wouldn’t that guy Hachiman need money for university?

That would be another considerable expense…

It would be better to seriously encourage him to aim for a public university with lower costs.

Better see how he did in this upcoming midterm exam first!

“Yay! Akeno-chan and I already decided we wanna go to a cat café next!”

Holding Ryōhei’s other hand, Akeno nodded eagerly, looking equally excited and expectant.

“All right!”

The happy family returned home fully satisfied. After arriving home, Ryōhei told Komachi and Akeno to take an afternoon nap.

Since he already had plans to have dinner with the Miura mother-daughter duo later, he planned to go out again to buy ingredients so Hachiman could cook something for himself that evening.

Anyway, Hachiman’s cooking wasn’t actually half bad.

But Hachiman volunteered to go buy the groceries, insisting his father rest a bit more.

Seeing his son so determined, Ryōhei didn’t want to disappoint his filial intentions. He handed him some money, telling him to keep whatever change was left as pocket money.

Feeling content, the black-haired youth cheerfully picked up the grocery basket and stepped out. Even small things like these—just helping his father—made him genuinely happy.

“Hey, Hachiman!”

The black-haired boy had barely crossed the street when he suddenly heard that familiar yet distant, beautiful voice.

He didn’t turn his gaze, but his thin frame trembled slightly, seemingly shrinking smaller.

Ordinarily, a mother’s voice would be the most familiar thing to any child.

But in Hikigaya Hachiman’s heart, ever since the week after his high school entrance exams—when his mother suddenly asked for a divorce—this beautiful voice had become hazy and unreal.

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A/N: Last chapter, some of you actually called Big-Dango (Asuna) a gossiping, vulgar housewife! That’s just outrageous! Apologize immediately, all of you!!

This is a fan translation of 比企谷大叔永远年轻 by Stargazer All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!